Centre approves release of Rs 638 cr revenue deficit grant to Punjab

The Union finance ministry on Friday approved the release of revenue deficit grant of Rs 638.25 crore to Punjab for the financial year 2020-21.

The Union finance ministry on Friday approved the release of revenue deficit grant of Rs 638.25 crore to Punjab for the financial year 2020-21.

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The grant-in-aid has been released to cover the post-devolution revenue deficit as per the recommendation made by the 15th Finance Commission. Punjab is among the 13 states for which release of revenue deficit grant of Rs 6155.75 crore was approved by the Centre.

Also, the Centre approved the release of another Rs 247.50 crore under the State Disaster Risk Management Fund (SDRMF) to the state government to combat Covid-19. This is the first instalment of the central share of SDRMF during the current financial year, according to a release order issued by the department of expenditure, Union finance ministry.

Last month, the Centre had allowed the state to use the disaster response funds for taking preventive and mitigation measures for containment of coronavirus.